Trying custom cues before you buy them

[Celtic]

I thought the big dollar cost of a custom had to do with the quality and artistry of the wood work and less with the playability ?

Southwest should dispell that belief. They are not exactly putting out higly artisitc cues and the wood they use is nice, but pretty standard most of the time and not getting into pink ivory wood or expensive burls often. What people are paying for is the construction and the reputation of one of the top "hitting" cues out there.

There are many more custom cue makers out there that sell alot of cues based on their reputation of building a good "hitting" cue.